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Disabilities: Legal Issues

Learning Knows No Bounds

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is the federal law that governs how states and public agencies, including public schools, provide early intervention, special education, and related services to children with disabilities. Children with disabilities are covered from birth to age 21. The IDEA defines fourteen disability categories:

  1. Autism
  2. Deaf-blindness
  3. Deafness
  4. Developmental delay
  5. Emotional disturbance
  6. Hearing impairment
  7. Intellectual disability
  8. Multiple disabilities
  9. Orthopedic impairment
  10. Other health impairment
  11. Specific learning disability
  12. Speech or language impairment
  13. Traumatic brain injury
  14. Visual impairment, including blindness

The IDEA requires that school districts provide a free appropriate public education (FAPE) in the least restrictive environment (LRE) for students with disabilities. It also requires that certain due process provisions are met in the identification and provision of the FAPE.

The IDEA and its predecessor statute, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, emerged in response to federal cases that held that not providing children with disabilities with a free public education was unconstitutional. The IDEA has been amended and reauthorized several times, most recently in 2004.

Under IDEA 2004:

  1. Special education and related services should be designed to meet the unique learning needs of eligible children with disabilities, preschool through age 21.
  2. Students with disabilities should be prepared for further education, employment and independent living.

In order to meet the requirements of the IDEA, schools must create an Individualized Education Program (IEP) for each eligible student. The IEP is a unique plan that specifies the services each student receives and how often, a description of the student’s current level of performance, a description of how the student’s disability affects his/her performance, measurable goals to be reached, and the accommodations and modifications to be provided to meet those goals. Some common accommodations and modifications include: extended time on assignments, a quiet room for tests, alternative formats for handouts, large font, Braille, visual cues, time-out walks, etc...The IEP also specifies related services such as transportation, speech therapy, occupational and physical therapy, and counseling, among others.

The I.E.P. is developed at a meeting that involves a team of professionals who can provide information that is valuable for the development of the I.E.P. The I.E.P. team includes the parents of the child, not less than one regular education teacher of the child (if the child is, or may be, participating in the regular education environment), not less than one special education teacher of the child, a representative of the school (who has certain specific knowledge and qualifications), an individual who can interpret the instructional implications of evaluation results and who may also be one of the other listed members, and whenever appropriate, the child with a disability. In addition, at the discretion of the parent or the agency/school, other individuals who have knowledge or special expertise regarding the child, including related services personnel as appropriate, may attend.

I.E.P.’s must be updated annually, but team members can call a meeting to update the I.E.P. at any time in order to discuss issues related to the child’s progress. Schools must re-evaluate students’ eligibility for special education services every three years.

All teachers, including science teachers play an important role in the development of I.E.P.’s. Subject teachers, including science teachers, can frequently provide essential information on the child’s progress and on areas of needed support within their class. Also, by attending the I.E.P. meeting, teachers can voice concerns over the implementation of specific accommodations in their classes.

For additional information on the IDEA and I.E.P.’s, please see the resources below:

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